Scars of Dracula – 1970 | 96 mins | Horror | Colour

Plot Synopsis

This was Hammer’s last ‘period’ Dracula before they plunged the Count disastrously into Swinging London, and Roy Ward Baker was provided with such an impoverished budget that Scars of Dracula looked markedly cheaper than previous Hammer productions. Despite attempts to restore some elements from Stoker previously omitted in the Hammer cycle, notably Dracula scaling the castle walls, the strained plot simply lurches from one gory set piece to another, like the brutal stabbing of Anouska Hempel, and extra lashings of sex and sadism as Dracula’s half-naked servant Patrick Troughton is branded with a red-hot sword. Christopher Lee is given greater dialogue than in previous incarnations and his dogged efforts to give the Count a truly aristocratic bearing are rewarded with a most satisfying death scene. Dennis Waterman is a rather limp hero and Jenny Hanley suffered the ignominy of being dubbed by Nikki van der Zyl.

Following the death of another young maiden from a vampire bite, the rural Transylvania residents decide to finally rid themselves of Count Dracula by burning down his castle lair. Years later, philandering Paul Carlson (Christopher Matthews), on the run from the Burgomaster, arrives in the village looking for bed-and-breakfast, but when none is forthcoming he is forced to seek refuge at Castle Dracula. When Paul fails to reappear, his brother, Simon (Dennis Waterman), and his girlfriend, Sarah (Jenny Hanley), arrive in the village and hear that he was last seen en-route to the doom-laden castle.With the assistance of the local priest (Michael Gwynn), Simon returns to Dracula’s castle vowing revenge for his missing brother.